Mesa Ridge 40, Pueblo South 38

BOULDER — Mesa Ridge guard Tiffani Jackson hit a buzzer-beating layup to lift the Grizzlies over Pueblo South 40-38 in stunning fashion Thursday in the Class 4A state girls basketball semifinals at the Coors Events Center.

With seconds remaining in the game, Mesa Ridge center Kylee Shook made a big block that resulted in a fast-break opportunity for the Grizzlies. Gabby Purnell carried the ball past halfcourt, lost control, then passed to Jackson who hit the game-winner.

"We got lucky at the end and someone stepped up and that happened to be me," said Jackson, who finished with 10 points.

Jackson said she heard the crowd counting down the time, but didn't realize she had so little time left.

Mesa Ridge senior guard Tiffani Jackson (21) watches her shot drop for the game winner with less than a second left in regulation. (Karl Gehring, The Denver Post)

"I knew it was under two seconds, but I had no idea it was going to be a buzzer beater," Jackson said.

The victory sends Mesa Ridge to its first state championship appearance on Saturday, where the Grizzlies will face the winner of Thursday night's Broomfield-Valor Christian semifinal. Broomfield was leading by 20 points after the third quarter.

Pueblo South's Shannon Patterson was plagued with foul trouble, picking up three in the first half. Patterson, who averaged 21.2 points entering the game, struggled to get into her rhythm early, shooting just 1-of-7 from the field in the first half.

Patterson would finish with 14 points and 11 rebounds to lead Pueblo South.

"We thought if we kept her 15 or under we win it," Beatty said. "So we kept her right around there and that's what ended up happening."

South came out strong in the third quarter, applying heavy defensive pressure to take the lead. From there, the game went back-and-forth between the two teams to the end. Up 38-35 late in the fourth quarter, South guard Jaylyn Duran hit a 3-pointer to tie it up.

"I'm glad we had that seven-point lead at half because we needed every single one of those points at the end of the game," Mesa Ridge coach Jeff Beatty said.

Beatty said his team's defense has been solid in the past two games — Ridge held D'Evelyn to 41 points Saturday — but they need to find a way to be more productive on offense in the finals.

"We have to figure out a way to score some more points Saturday though," Beatty said. "It's going to be a tough one."

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